Recreation
by MusicistheMuse
Summary: Coda Blue was the top secret organization Ash Rosenberg worked for when the war between humans and kaiju was happening. When the Breach is closed Ash is retired. No one alive knows what she did except herself, the president, and Hercules Hansen. When one Dr. Newton Geiszler's goes wrong Ash and Raleigh, the only two capable jaeger pilots are called back into duty, needing copilots
1. Chapter 1

**June 2026**

**New Port, Oregon**

**Chapter 1**

Ash stared out at the sea from the porch of her small condo. It'd been over a year since she retired and the portal under the Pacific closed. With a sigh, she pulled up her sleeve to look at the large tattoo on the inside of her wrist. It was a constant reminder of what she went through. After a year she could barely look at the symbol without crying. The symbol stood for what got her best friend killed, what almost got her killed, and yet no one knew about it. What happened to her and several others was completely classified. Not a single person besides her and the president himself knew what happened, at least not anyone that was alive. She covered the tattoo and went back inside to hear her cell phone ringing.

"Hello?"

"Ash Rosenberg, you have a new assignment. You will fly to headquarters in San Francisco in one hour." The voice Ash recognized as Herc Hansen's paused before speaking again in a whisper, "I've been informed of what's happened to you and I want to apologize for making you do this."

"Wait—" she started, but was cut off when Herc hung up. A bit stupefied, she went to her closet, took out her suitcase, and packed everything she could manage. When she pulled a leather jacket with three claw marks and "Tiger Black" printed across she froze.

_"Come on Dalia, we've got a kaiju to kill!"_

_ Dalia picked herself off the bunk with a big smile, "It's about time. I was beginning to wonder if the kaiju gave up." Ash rolled her eyes at her best friend and co-pilot of Tiger Black, a jaeger made for them to protect a top secret facility off coast of the Pacific in Washington. They put on their pilot uniform and went to their jaeger like they had done many times before. Each time always ended the same. The kaiju that wondered into their sector was killed and they came back with minor damage. This time was different._

_ When they reached the kaiju the fight broke out immediately. The kaiju, codenamed Saber Tooth, was larger than anticipated and knocked jaeger down when it ran into it. Dalia and Ash took the opportunity to blast the kaiju in the stomach with the plasma cannon. Saber stabbed the jaeger it's midsection with a large claw before one of its legs was cut off by a sword that extended out of the left arm, Dalia's arm, of Tiger. The kaiju backed up to get shot three more times. It charged at them again and ripped off Tiger's right leg. Ash shot it in the head before their jaeger fell back. Saber Tooth fell on top of the damaged jaeger, presumably dead. After struggling to get out from the kaiju Dalia spoke._

_ "Pulse check?"_

_ It was something the two of them did after they heard about Gipsy Danger. Before Ash could respond the kaiju sprung up and ripped a hole in the left side of Tiger Black's head. Panicked, Ash shot it again, but to no effect. Dalia had a hunk of metal going through her stomach before she was torn out of the jaeger. Letting out a scream for her friend, Ash pulled the control off her right arm and put it on her left. With the sword she cut the kaiju's head in half. _

Ash shuddered at the memory and left the jacket in her closet. She didn't know, but she couldn't get rid of the jacket. When she was ready, she went to the airport and boarded her plane. As soon as the plane took off she drifted into a restless sleep.

At headquarters, Ash was ushered in and taken to Herc's office. Eager to know why she had been summoned here after so long she approached the man who hadn't seemed to notice her yet.

"Sir," she said with a slight bow of her head.

The Australian man looked over at her and walked towards her. He smiled and extended a hand, "Sorry I didn't notice you. I was a bit wrapped up."

Ash smiled politely and shook his hand. "If you don't mind me getting straight to the point, I'd like to know why I'm here."

Immediately his smile fell. "Right, well you might want to take a seat," He paused as they both sat down before continuing. "There have been some spikes on our radar lately. They aren't significant, in fact they're barely even there, but we can't be too sure anymore. We've been rebuilding Gipsy Danger and Tiger Black, and they're almost completed."

"I don't understand. Why did you rebuild Tiger? I don't have a co-pilot, and I thought Mako Mori wasn't able to pilot anymore after she developed that neurosis or whatever it was."

Herc gave her a contemplative look. "You've been keeping track of Mako and Raleigh?"

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, "Well, I haven't been dealing with everything well and it kept me busy. Why are the jaegers being rebuilt? We shouldn't need them anymore. The portal is closed. They can't get here. Even if there are some bleeps I don't see why you should be cautious."

He sighed, "Most of this wasn't my decision. If it would've been up to me everything would've been terminated, but the president had other plans. What I'm about to tell you is top secret. I know you know how that works." Ash nodded curtly. "Now, against my advice the president ordered Dr. Newton Geiszler to find out what made the kaiju work and figure out how to make better weapons. Newton figured out how their cloning process worked and being daft as he is, tried it on some of the kaiju. We've been getting some spikes from them and somehow there have been spikes going off in the Pacific. They aren't like before. They're very small but we're taking a lot of caution. If something happens we want to stop it before it starts. So, we've called in the only capable pilots left and some recruits."

Ash sat there for a minute and let all the information sink in. When everything sunk in and everything clicked she was furious. She thought all this was over and yet here it was starting all over again. This time, at the fault of the humans. "Aren't you a pilot?"

"I am," he said a sad frown. "I'm not permitted to pilot since I've taken over Stacker's position."

Ash opened her mouth to start an argument, but closed her mouth thinking better of it. "So when do I get to meet Tiger and these recruits?"

"It won't be for another month or so. We want you to stay in the city until then. We've made arrangements for you at Fairmont." He stopped speaking and when he did so Ash got up to leave. He spoke again just as she was about to leave. "One more thing, if should happen to run into Raleigh anywhere don't let him know who you are or that you're a jaeger pilot. He can't know about you until it's absolutely necessary."

"Yes sir." Ash went got a taxi to the huge hotel they had booked her at, all the time wondering why she was supposed to be a secret. She didn't mind at all, she was merely curious. She wouldn't have explained who she was if she ran into him anyway. Being a jaeger pilot wasn't something she advertised. After checking in to the hotel and settling into her suite she went out to explore the town.

A couple hours later Ash was settled into an outdoor table of a café when she noticed a familiar face. Smiling she stood up and waved at the girl, "Mary!"

The tiny red head dashed to Ash with a huge grin. "Cuz! It's been too long! What are you doing here? Last I heard you were in Washington."

Ash hugged her younger cousin. "I'm living in Oregon right now. I'm here for a job. How's school?"

Mary frowned, "It still seems so strange to go back to school after everything that happened. I'm doing good though. One of my professors told me I was his best student. Oh! That reminds me," She grabbed Ash's wrist and pulled her down the street to the front of the Agronaut Hotel. "This is where Raleigh Becket is staying! I saw him go in like twenty minutes ago!"

"That's cool," Ash replied while nodding.

"Well don't go crazy!" She said sarcastically. "He closed the rift!" When she saw that didn't stir her expression she tried again poking Ash's side, "He's really hot!"

Ash laughed at her cousin who was waggling her eyebrows at her in suggestive way. "He is. I can't argue with that."

Nodding with satisfaction her cousin replied, "You should wait from him to leave and 'accidently' run into him."

"Isn't that a bit stalkerish?"

"Maybe, but you guys would be perfect! You're both damaged and hot and bad ass. I ship it. Hmm… what's a good name?" Mary thought out loud. "Ashleigh! Wait no, that's a name. Rash! No that's just bad. I know! Beckenberg!"

"You ship it? What does that mean?"

"What? Oh! It's tumblr speak for I want you two to be a couple."

"What is—never mind. I'm not going to do that. It's ridiculous. Besides, I'm too busy for that." If Ash wasn't careful her cousin was going to make her stay here until he did come out. She may be tiny, but she was a force to be reckoned with. "I have to back to my—"

Ash was cut off by her cousin's squeal. Mary pointed at rather muscular looking man wearing sunglasses and Metts cap. "It's Raleigh! Now's your chance!" Before Ash could respond she was shoved into the man. She would've toppled over if he hadn't grabbed her hips.

"Sorry," she muttered refusing to look up. "My friend is a bit busy."

He nodded before releasing her, "No problem."

With a groan Ash walked back to her cousin. "You can't do that! I have to go."

"Ash wait!" Mary called after her. "Rosenberg!" She tried again with no result. Raleigh stopped and turned when he heard Ash's name. He saw that name on a document on Herc's desk.


	2. Chapter 2

**July 2026**

**San Francisco, California**

**Chapter 2**

For two weeks, Ash had managed to avoid running into Raleigh again. This was much to his annoyance. He wanted to confront her and ask her what she had to do with Herc. Why he wanted to know who this girl was so badly, he didn't know. Something about her seemed off-putting to him. When he met with Herc he was only told that Gipsy Danger was being rebuilt because there were some bleeps on the kaiju radar and that there were some pilot recruits being arranged for him. He didn't ask much more, and now he was regretting that. At the time he was excited to get back in Gipsy. Raleigh didn't like the idea of more kaiju coming back and fighting them, but he missed the feeling he got being in Gipsy. He decided that if he did not run into Ash within a week he would ask Herc about her.

That week he scoured the surrounding area on foot searching for her or the girl that she was with. After three days of not seeing either of them he began to go to the hotels nearby and aske if an Ash Rosenberg was staying there. On the fifth day he had been to all the hotels except one, the Fairmont. Walking into the large lobby he took off his meager disguise of a pair of sunglasses and a baseball cap, as was expected. Raleigh approached the front desk to see a short older man.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" The man said with an Irish accent.

"Is there an Ash Rosenberg staying here?"

"You're Raleigh Becket aren't ya?" Raleigh merely nodded. "If there is an Ash Rosenberg I can't tell you where she's staying. Just telling you that there is, I'd be breaking rules."

Raleigh forced a small smile, "Thank you."

The Irish man looked down at his computer and looked for quite some time before looking back up. "Aye, there's an Ash Rosenberg."

"In that case, can I book a room?"

Quizzically, the man studied Raleigh. "I have to ask, what is your business with this girl? They aren't," he paused to search for the right word, "adulterated I trust."

"No. She's an old friend," Raleigh lied easily. "We were supposed to meet here around this time, but when I flew up here I managed to lose my phone."

"Then I see no reason not to be putting you in the room across from hers," he said with a sly smile.

After his room was booked Raleigh made arrangements for all of his things to be moved from his old hotel room to this one. When all of his things had been transferred and unpacked, he paced his room. He was having trouble deciding if he should be blunt and obvious by just knocking on her door and asking questions or if he should be discrete and "accidently" run into her somewhere. Both had their advantages. Both had their downfalls. After ten minutes of scrutiny he chose the former, knocking on her door. As he left his room and stood in front of the door to Ash's room he lost some of his nerve, but then his curiosity came biting back up. He wanted, maybe even needed, to know who this girl was before he bothered himself to death. He knocked three times.

"Hell—Oh," Mary answered the door.

Raleigh rubbed the back of his neck, "Is Ash here?"

"No," Mary rushed out before closing her eyes and shaking her head. "I mean yes. Just, uh, just hold on. Wait, how did you know her name? And how did you find her? Why are you here?"

"She looked familiar. I couldn't figure out why, so I got curious."

Mary eyed him with a hint of suspicion but shrugged. "Stay here. I have to warn you though; she's more than a bit drunk." Without waiting for his response she ran into the room and yelled at Ash before letting out a groan and calling Raleigh in. "I'll be in the bedroom if you need me."

"You're Raleigh Becket," Ash said as soon as Mary closed the door to the bedroom. "Why are you here? Don't you know I'm avoiding you?"

"Why?"

"I don't," Ash stopped to hiccup, "like to talk about it. It hurts. You make me remember." She hiccupped again. "And I have orders." She stretched her arms revealing the tattoo on her wrist that was covered by her sleeve. Raleigh took notice and grabbed her wrist. He pulled her sleeve farther down and studied the tattoo.

"You're a pilot?" He asked while wheels churned in his head.

"No!" Ash blurted loudly.

"No one besides pilots have this tattoo. I've never heard you though."

"I'm no pilot," Ash murmured. "I don't want to be. There's no more connection. The empty hurts. You're reminding me. Mary!" Ash called out. "Mary!"

Mary came in and gave Raleigh a sympathetic look. "What is it?"

"He makes me remember."

Addressing Raleigh, Mary spoke. "I'm sorry. She has survivors' guilt. Awhile back she worked for the government. Something happened and her best friend died right beside her. I guess seeing someone who's gone through something similar makes her remember. If you want to talk to her, you should come back tomorrow afternoon."

He nodded, "Thanks. And I'm sorry for causing trouble."

She gave him a sympathetic look, "You weren't the problem. By the way, I know you probably get this a lot, but I'm really sorry about your brother. I knew him in grade school. He was friends with my older brother."

Raleigh gave her a curious look. "What's your last name?"

Mary walked him to the door. "It's Harding. My brother's name was Harvey."

"I remember him. Did you say was?"

Mary nodded curtly with sadness in her eyes. "He died a day after Yancy. The doctor said it had something to do with some messed up drift that happened between them."

Raleigh froze, "They drifted?"

Mary was startled by his shock, "How could you not know that? He disappeared for three weeks and when he came back he was kind of out of it. All I knew about it at the time was that he was with your brother. I heard him talking in his sleep." She stopped and saw how confused he was, "I'm sorry but you really need to go now." He shuffled out of the door and Mary closed it behind him.

Thoughts spun around in her head and her stomach twisted at the thought of Yancy and her brother being dead. How could Raleigh not know that Yancy and Harvey drifted and whatever else happened in those three weeks? He and Yancy had drifted at least once after that, and from what little she knew about drifting, the second they were connected Raleigh would've known. Throwing those thoughts aside Mary looked down at her older cousin sprawled out on the couch.

"What happened to you Ash?" She asked aloud with a sigh.

The color drained from Ash's face. "I'm sorry Mary. You can go home if you want. I'll be okay."

Mary was going to argue, but the look on Ash's face made her nod. Mary grabbed her things and walked out the hotel room. As she walked down the hall to the elevator she heard a loud bang followed by a curse. Mary chuckled, thinking of what Ash must have done.

Raleigh flopped down on his bed and flipped the TV on. All the information he just received confused him. It wasn't possible for Raleigh not to know that Yancy had drifted with someone else. He would've been able to see Yancy's memories of it and fractions of Harvey's. Mary had to have been lying, but the way he didn't believe that. People don't normally lie about those things. He groaned. That was only a small part of the confusing information he got. Ash had a PPDC tattoo, which was something only pilots got. However, he would have heard of her if she was a pilot, especially since she would be one of the few surviving ones. Something the girl he now knew as Mary said struck his memory, Ash's best friend died beside her. If she were a pilot, than that could mean she'd been through almost exactly what he had been through, but he would definitely have heard of that. If she wasn't a pilot and was simply employed by the government then why would Herc have a file on her? With a huff, Raleigh flipped to a movie channel. This girl was a complete mystery, and this mystery he was determined to solve.


	3. Chapter 3

**July 2026**

**San Francisco, California**

**Chapter 3**

Ash paced the room as she waited for Herc to call her back. Raleigh found her. He was staying in the room across from her, and she had holed herself up. He repeatedly tried to get her to talk to him, but she refused. She groaned and threw herself on the couch. She knew that Raleigh would know who she was eventually, but he wouldn't ask too many questions if they were under supervision, which they currently weren't. She heard a knock on her door and went over to look through the peep hole. Seeing that it was room service, she relaxed her shoulders and let the boy in. She murmured a thank you as he silently rolled the cart in and left. She took the plates off of the cart. As soon as she sat on the couch she heard a noise. Before she could turn Raleigh was standing in front of her.

"What the hell?!" She exclaimed rising to her feet.

"I just want to talk."

"You hid in a trolley? How did you even—Are you that desperate? Why won't you just leave me alone?"

He ignored her questions and stretched his back. He was desperate, and while hiding in a cart wasn't the best idea, it was the only one he had. "What do you have to do with Herc?"

Ash studied him for awhile before answering, "If I answer this question will you leave?"

"Yes."

She sighed, "I'm part of the assignment you're in."

"So you're a pilot?"

"No," she lied. "Leave now. I answered your question. You said you would leave if I did."

"I lied," he said with a grin.

Ash frowned at him. He was rubbing her the wrong way. "Why can't you just leave me alone? You'll know everything soon enough."

"That's not good enough for me. I want to know now." For the past week he had been thinking about everything. Maybe she was a candidate for his co-pilot. If she was he didn't see why she wasn't telling him. There could only be one reason. "Why did Herc order you not tell me who you are?"

"How did you know that?" She asked narrowing her eyes.

"I didn't, but now I do. If you're not a pilot then maybe you're a candidate for a co-pilot."

"We aren't drift compatible," she lied again. In fact, they were more compatible than him and Mako.

"Then what?"

"You'll know when you need to know."

"See, the more you talk the more I get the impression that you are a pilot. What I don't understand is why you're lying about it and why Herc told you not to tell me if we're on the same assignment."

Ash clenched her fist and rose her voice slightly, "It's none of your business wh—" she was cut off by the ringing phone. She rushed to it and picked it up.

"Miss Rosenberg, Mr. Hansen cannot answer your call today. He is attending to some very important business. He said to tell you that you should do as you see fit," the young man said before taking a pause. "I'm sorry, but I have to go. Goodbye."

Ash put the phone back on the receiver. Do as she saw fit? She didn't get to explain what situation she was in. That was a vague reply. She mulled over her options. She could tell Raleigh who she was even though she didn't want his questions, or she could continue to be harassed by him. "Alright," she had made her decision. "Sit down. I'll tell you, but you can't ask any questions." He nodded and sat on the couch. As paced thinking of exactly what to say. She couldn't explain much to him because it was still classified. She could only reveal two things to him. "I used to be a pilot. I was shut down after my partner died in battle. The situation was, well it was remarkably similar to what happened to you and your brother. After I killed the kaiju my jaeger died. It was a couple hours before they finally got to me. My partner bled out. They had to cut her out of the kaiju's hand." Ash's throat and eyes stung as she spoke. She could remember her best friend's pain as the metal pierced her stomach just before the connection broke like it had just happened. She remembered watching as her limp body was cut out of the beast's hand. "I can't—I can't tell you why you've never heard of me."

Raleigh stood up and went to Ash. He put a hand on her back. "I'm sorry. I know how it feels to lose someone that close."

She nodded and stood perfectly still. She didn't want to cry. She was tired of crying. Before speaking she took a deep, calming breath, "I know. Thank you."

"So Gipsy isn't the only jaeger they remade?"

"No, my jaeger, Tiger Black, was fixed up."

He took his hand off of her and faced her, "I know you told me not to ask questions, but this one isn't about you. Do you know Harvey Harding?"

"Yeah, he's my cousin."

"What did he have to do with my brother?"

"Weren't they friends growing up? I didn't know Harvey very well. I lived on the other side of the country." He didn't think she was lying. If she was a pilot then she probably wouldn't have known about it anyway. It was just a shot in dark. "I have a question for you. You've met Dr. Geiszler right? What kind of person is he? You'd have to be crazy to clone a kaiju."

"He is a bit. He's drifted with kaiju brain twice. Being a scientist-type doesn't help much. He's too curious for his own good. He's almost gotten himself killed more than once."

"Drifting with a kaiju… I'm not sure if that's incredibly smart or idiotic."

"It got us the information we needed to destroy the Breach."

"Then I'd say it's both. Has Herc contacted you?" Ash had started to realize she wanted to see Tiger again. She thought it might make her feel better. The wait was making her anxious.

"No. It shouldn't be too much longer before he does. I should leave now and let you eat." He turned and walked towards the door.

"We need to pretend like you don't know who I am until Herc fills you in."

"Right," he said before leaving.

Three days later Herc called them in.


End file.
